26: Chris

Chris and Larissa spot a fawn trapped in plastic fencing near a billboard at night. Despite Chris’s warnings about the mother returning, Larissa insists on helping. Using nail clippers, they carefully cut the netting while Chris, visibly terrified of deer, worries the doe will appear.

A huffing doe emerges at the tree line, escalating Chris’s panic. Larissa takes over clipping and asks Chris to hold the fawn. They free the fawn, but as they retreat the doe charges. Chris stands between Larissa and danger, throws dirt to stall the doe, and both dive into the car. They watch the fawn reunite with its mother before the pair vanish into the woods.

At a 24-hour diner, they decompress over coffee and joke about deer and Woofarine. Larissa promises not to tell Mike about Chris’s fear. Their easy rapport and shared adrenaline deepen their connection, even as they keep the conversation light.

Chris pays, drives Larissa home, and walks her to her door near 3 a.m. Alone afterward, he admits to himself that the night felt like his best date, yet it wasn’t a date. He recognizes he’s falling for Larissa but commits to never acting on it because she is his best friend Mike’s girlfriend.